Jacks gear up for speedy Missouri in opener

SDSU running back Zach Zenner will take on an SEC defense for the first time in his career when the Jacks take on Missouri on the road in their season opener tonight.(Photo: Emily Spartz / Argus Leader)

COLUMBIA, Mo. –The South Dakota State football team didn't drive some nine hours over the course of two days merely to make a quick buck.

However, SDSU will have to find a way to corral considerable speed if it's to return home from today's 2:30 p.m. season opener against the University of Missouri with anything more than a $350,000 check.

When this game was booked in 2011, Mizzou was in the Big 12. Now, it's a member of the fast-twitch SEC – winner of seven of the last eight BCS national titles – and a good one, at that. The Tigers are the reigning champs of the SEC East and the Cotton Bowl, and are ranked No. 24 in the Associated Press preseason poll.

SDSU coach John Stiegelmeier has called this first-ever meeting with an SEC squad the toughest test the program has faced in his 18 years at the helm. The oddsmakers agree, installing the Jacks – ranked No. 10 in the FCS – as 26-point underdogs.

The primary basis: Speed. Missouri is dripping with it. Fleet feet are part of what the Gary Pinkel-coached program has been built upon.

Although plenty successful of late, SDSU is known for standing out in terms of swiftness within the Missouri Valley Football Conference. If the Jacks can't neutralize the Tigers' speed, it'll likely burn them.

"We've got to be disciplined, we've got to be focused," said senior defensive end Jack Sherlock, one of seven first-time starters for SDSU. "Any mental bust is a touchdown. We've got to be mentally plugged in on every single play."

The Jacks succeeded in that last year, if temporarily, scoring 17 points in the first quarter at Nebraska and paving the way for All-American running back Zach Zenner to gain 202 yards in a little more than three quarters. But the Jacks lost, as they have in all six encounters with FBS teams since moving to the Division I level. The average score in those power-conference contests: 37.2-12.2.

Meanwhile, the Tigers have thumped their last 10 FCS foes by an average of 50.5 to 7.5. That's not a case of isolated success; Mizzou has been ranked in the final top 20 in four of the last seven seasons.

The Tigers return five starters on both sides of the ball from last year's 12-2 team plus, a bunch of frequently used subs. They have a new full-time starter at quarterback in sophomore Maty Mauk, are retooling at receiver due to a pair of offseason issues and boast a stable of capable running backs.

Reportedly, the run game has been ahead of the pass game in fall scrimmages – and the defense has been ahead of the offense. The Missouri ends were especially attention grabbing in the film that SDSU watched. The group is led by 6-foot-3, 260-pound senior Markus Golden, a preseason all-SEC pick and candidate for two national defensive player of the year awards.

It's not the ideal matchup for an SDSU offensive line that will feature three first-time starters: junior left tackle Bryce Siverling, junior left guard Dylan Seiter and redshirt freshman center Jacob Ohnesorge. They've got to hold up in order for the Jacks trio of senior skill stars – Zenner, quarterback Austin Sumner and receiver Jason Schneider – to operate at a high level.

"We're going to have to score, obviously – more points than we've scored in the past against FBS teams," said Zenner, the career active leader in the FCS for rushing yards (4,529). "We're going to need to keep that going in order to beat one of these teams."

Pulling off a power-conference upset remains on the list of program goals. SDSU has come within a couple of scores three times, while suffering just as many lopsided losses. This play-up game has extra hubbub in that it'll air on ESPNU and mark the grand opening of a $50 million renovation at 71,168-seat Faurot Field.

SDSU can't afford to get caught flat-footed by any of it if they're going to have a chance of keeping pace.

"We have some things we're going to do to try to help the discrepancy in speed," Stiegelmeier said. "But we're not getting that on the scout team. We're not sure of the result."

TODAY'S GAMES

SDSU at MISSOURI

Time/TV: 2:30 p.m., ESPNU

The skinny: The Jacks are 26-point underdogs going against 24th-ranked SEC opponent but could have the offensive weapons to make it closer than that.

USD at OREGON

Time/TV: 9:30 p.m.,

PAC-12 Network

The skinny: USD faces a monumental road test as 53.5-point underdogs against the nation's No. 3 team, but coach Joe Glenn is hoping his team responds.

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